Dear Friend,
So, today in class we watched this 6 part television show about a series of events that occurred in August of 1991 in Crown Heights. It was such an emotional piece; it consisted of one woman reenacting the interviews of witnesses and other people from the community. Through this medium, she was able to relay this story that I had never heard before. Rabbi Schneerson was in a car that was apparently speeding, and in order to avoid slamming into a car, he steered his car onto the sidewalk. This is where it gets sad. There were two children on this sidewalk, both were hit by the car. And one child, Gavin Cato, ended up dying. This is when all hell broke loose. Some African American witnesses around claimed the driver was drunk. Many were trying to help the police officers determine what happened, but often the police ignored them. You see, there had been high tensions in Crown Heights for some time now between the Jewish community and the African American community. So, this was the breaking point. What followed were a series of attacks on the Jewish community by African Americans. And one man was murdered: Yankel Rosenbaum. He was stabbed by a group of black men. Riots continued and the city was in disarray.
Seeing all the (reenacted) personal accounts of the people involved in this was truly moving. One in particular was the father of Gavin Cato. He broke down in tears multiple times explaining how great of a child Gavin was. It was hard to watch moments like these. Others, however, showed nothing but anger. And this was from both of the communities. So many people were angry about these events, and by acting on that anger, they made things much worse. It’s times like these were its even more important for people to work together, not be torn apart. Of course, this is easier said than done. Revenge is a powerful driving force.
I can’t imagine witnessing either of these tragic events take place. If I had to be in one of those interviews, I only hope that I wouldn’t be filled with that much anger. I hope I would be able to push any hatred and anger out of my head; seeing it from the outside, you can see how detrimental it truly is. I like to think I could realize that it was individuals who caused this, not an entire group of people.
So, today in class we watched this 6 part television show about a series of events that occurred in August of 1991 in Crown Heights. It was such an emotional piece; it consisted of one woman reenacting the interviews of witnesses and other people from the community. Through this medium, she was able to relay this story that I had never heard before. Rabbi Schneerson was in a car that was apparently speeding, and in order to avoid slamming into a car, he steered his car onto the sidewalk. This is where it gets sad. There were two children on this sidewalk, both were hit by the car. And one child, Gavin Cato, ended up dying. This is when all hell broke loose. Some African American witnesses around claimed the driver was drunk. Many were trying to help the police officers determine what happened, but often the police ignored them. You see, there had been high tensions in Crown Heights for some time now between the Jewish community and the African American community. So, this was the breaking point. What followed were a series of attacks on the Jewish community by African Americans. And one man was murdered: Yankel Rosenbaum. He was stabbed by a group of black men. Riots continued and the city was in disarray.
Seeing all the (reenacted) personal accounts of the people involved in this was truly moving. One in particular was the father of Gavin Cato. He broke down in tears multiple times explaining how great of a child Gavin was. It was hard to watch moments like these. Others, however, showed nothing but anger. And this was from both of the communities. So many people were angry about these events, and by acting on that anger, they made things much worse. It’s times like these were its even more important for people to work together, not be torn apart. Of course, this is easier said than done. Revenge is a powerful driving force.
I can’t imagine witnessing either of these tragic events take place. If I had to be in one of those interviews, I only hope that I wouldn’t be filled with that much anger. I hope I would be able to push any hatred and anger out of my head; seeing it from the outside, you can see how detrimental it truly is. I like to think I could realize that it was individuals who caused this, not an entire group of people.
Your Friend,
Andrew Stoddard